But that was not the case way back then. Even though such tools did exist, you wouldn’t expect to create a full featured game so easily. So why am I talking about it anyways?

Syntax… Logic.. Algorithm…?

Many people want to enter the world of programming in this tech savvy generation. But from my observation in my college, I’ve found that people often confuse syntax for logic/algorithm and vice versa. What they don’t understand is that language is just the expression of a logic or algorithm in a particular format. They also have a hard time figuring out what they didn’t understand, the language or the logic?

Looking at me now, I’ve become quite good at problem solving, i.e. writing algorithms for various tasks. Now I’m no programming guru, and these algorithms are only elementary. But sometimes, it does take a bit of imagination to solve a problem if you’ve never seen a similar algorithm.

Since I started my programming experience by “trying” to make games in a Drag ‘N’ Drop tool, I could see the logic required behind each feature I added, without having the “language” hurdle. The program I used is called Game Maker. It’s free, even for commercial use. It now has a “PRO” version for a reasonable price (around $20 I guess, but you’ll have to check it out yourself, since the market is fluctuating so much). PRO was introduced only recently, and the free version doesn’t have any annoying restriction if you’re just starting out.

Game Maker is a drag and drop tool for creating games, also having an in-built scripting language which you can use once you get to that level. The basic point is, try following the tutorials online on that site, which will use mostly Drag ‘N’ Drop. Download examples to see how they work. Sooner or later, you’ll start seeing the logic behind everything. Since the representation of logic is visual (rather than programatical like in languages like C++), you’ll learn to differentiate between them.

Now, the above statement sounds silly, but as I mentioned, many people make mistakes in programming because they can’t differentiate between language and logic. This can be rectified by learning everything from start from someone who truly knows, but that’s a different story.

A time will come when you’ll start finding the Drag ‘N’ Drop thing a hurdle. It limits your speed. This is when you’ll jump into GML, i.e. Game Maker Language. It’s like any programming language, supporting basic features of them. But it mostly includes only high level commands specific to game programming. Every Drag ‘N’ Drop command has an equivalent command.

Now I won’t talk much about Game Maker software, because you can find it out yourself by downloading it. But I guess I made my point clear, on how Game Maker helps beginners to see the logic without programming hurdles. You then don’t think in terms of syntax, i.e. “I need to have a ‘cin’ statement here” etc., but in terms of logic, i.e. “I need my object to move when XYZ happens”. This might sound silly, but you won’t believe how much the lack of understanding of this part handicaps one’s ability to program.

Game Maker has been the first step for many…

In the Game Maker Forums, for years, young people have reported that Game Maker was their first stepping stone into the programming world. They learnt Game Maker first, and then could easily move towards other languages.

Even though hardly anyone mentioned the reason for this, you do know it now, after reading all this. So, have you started your journey yet?

I’d love your opinion on what I’ve written. Why not write a comment below?